AMG Review of What Do You Know Deutschland?

Vincent Jeffries
All Music Guide

This 1986 debut by the Sascha Konietzko-led KMFDM features some of the better industrial/dance experiments recorded by the one-time media artist between 1983 and 1985. Plodding and repetitive tracks like "Conillon" and "Positiv" render What do You Know, Deutschland? less energetic than later releases as they lack the guitar fury that figures prominently in KMFDM's better mid-career work. There are still plenty of tasty synth flurries within the disc's more dance-oriented industrial material. Violent and perverted lyrical themes ("Itchy Bitchy") occasionally give way to the scathing political commentary ("What do You Know") that helped define the group's subversive identity. Featuring Aidan Hughes's first contribution to what would eventually be one of rock music's most memorable cover art collections, What do You Know, Deutschland? has enough industrial grit to keep KMFDM fans interested in, if not awed by its dark intentions.